1 Year!

Happy One-Year Birthday, Jesse!
And what a wonderful year it's been!

Who knew that there existed a series of books about a bear named Jesse?! I unintentionally came across them at the library last month and just had to bring them home! The name is so perfect!

Indeed, you are the softest, most cuddly and affectionate bear. You are a plump, juicy berry. You are like all things soft and delicious. Are you (or your fans reading this) getting sick from all of this syrupy sweet gushing? (Good!)

It's almost impossible to believe that exactly a year ago (at the exact time that I am telling Blogger to post this entry), I began labor with you! When your brother was born, the first thing my eyes focused on was his genitals! We sort of had a hunch that he would be a girl, so I was shocked!

When you were born, the first things I noticed (well, besides a huge squirt of meconium all over the two of us!) were your chubby pecs and the rolling fat on your shoulders and arms! I was equally shocked: a big baby! (A Jesse bear!)

This month you turned into a communicating machine! My favorite moment of the day with you is just before bed after Papi has held you and cuddled with you up and down the hallway for a few minutes to help calm and transition you to sleep with your blankie in hand. After he hands you off by placing you in my lap, you always arch your back and throw your head back to get one last upside-down glance at Papi before waving good-bye to him. You wave and wave and don't stop until Papi waves back! Then you turn to me and give me the sign for mama-milk (two pats on the chest), and then we continue your bedtime routine from there. I smile and ache deep inside every single time.

Also this month, we've caught you standing on your own without support more often. Walking is just around the corner, so we're hanging on to these last baby moments! You love to eat but nothing makes you get sillier at the dinner table than when you feed us your food directly into our mouths. We thank you for sharing and then you do it again and again until you're pleased as punch and grinning from ear to ear. Sweet boy.

Jesse Bear, you came to us second, but it doesn't mean in any way that you're last place. We respect and celebrate the gift of having you as a son and a brother today and always!

Love, your proud family

The Jesse Show

Two more videos of Jesse! Nothing special going on here, just typical Jesse cuteness. Though on this day it seemed a bit like The Jesse Show because Papi, Lucas and I were cuddling on the couch across from Jesse on the floor, and Jesse seemed to love all the direct attention and being able to perform for us. By the time I finally grabbed the camera to catch some of his game, it was almost over. But he's still cute nonetheless. I tried to get him to wave at the end but he wasn't having it.

Hey, guess whose birthday is in TWO DAYS?!

A Beautiful Spring Day Last Week

Sleepy Heads

This one woke up perky and happy and big-eyed as usual...

This one had a nasty 36-hour stomach bug that kept him snoozing on the couch for most of a day this past week...

Indoor Picnic

Every day since Jesse was born, Lucas and I try to have some intentional "Mama and Lucas Time" while Jesse is napping, which always makes Lucas feel so special. Depending on when Jesse wakes up, sometimes it means a good chunk of time and other times it might be just 20 minutes, so we take it when we can get it.

This was one of those frigid cold days a few weeks ago when the prospect of bundling up two boys and getting them out of the house for an uncomfortable walk in the morning or afternoon no longer seemed like an option. I was lamenting outloud about wishing that we could have a picnic at Coney Island under the sun, and Lucas asked if we could have a picnic for lunch. I told him that we'd do it inside after he woke from his nap, and that he could choose whatever he wanted to eat from the fridge...

When he awoke he remembered (in true Lucas fashion -- he never forgets a promise!) our picnic idea, so I had to keep my word! Can you make out the interesting assortment of snacks he chose? He also chose a yoga mat instead of a blanket to sit on, and we enjoyed munching and talking while Jesse slept on...

Lunch

Waving "hi" to the camera.


A pause before...

...trying to grab the camera.

Lunch is over!

A Moment...

...where everyone is happily doing their own thing, and I can sit back and just watch and enjoy them. (If only I had had a decaf pumpkin spice latte in hand.)

Jesse's Video Debut!

You've seen several videos of Lucas already; now here are a couple featuring Jesse!

Towards the end of the video below I mention the Statue of Liberty, which apparently seems much closer in person than in the video. If you're squinting and straining to look, try somewhere to the right of the lamp post (between the lamp post and the tree). ;)



For this next one you'll have to turn your head to the side (or your computer screen!) to view. It's so easy to forget not to turn the camera on its side! But we've held back on posting way too many cute videos here for this reason, so we're having you put up with it (hopefully) just this one time. Jesse's really into a few hammering toys but this one that we suggested to Abuela and Abuelo for Christmas is by far his favorite. Papi caught this video of Jesse just before his nap. There's nothing like a bit of hammering to help wind down for a good sleep!

Dress-Up

In Lucas's room there's a nook with a mirror (hurray for dollar stores on every Brooklyn corner!) and a box filled with old ties, scarves, hats, and other dress-up clothes for pretend play...

Jesse loves it, too!

Park

Sewing and Oiling

I usually don't bother sewing until both boys are napping or sleeping for the night. But since the mending and hemming and other little projects have been piling up for too long, I waited until only Jesse was taking his morning nap to pull out the sewing machine, so of course Lucas was ready to participate!

He messed around for a while with the buttons and settings and the pedal on the floor until I was ready. Then he watched me work for a while and had fun jumping up and down along with the needle!

Later on when I was oiling the machine to store it away for a while he asked what I was doing. He knows exactly what oil is from train books and shows, so I showed him my machine's "engine" inside and how its wheels also need oiling from time to time to help them work better. He then asked if he could oil his trains so he brought them over!

The spout was closed but he had a good time pretending to unsqueak the axles and wheels. This kid is just so darn adorable and fun!

Q-tips

I love watching our little explorer get into things. The messes are totally worth it!

Edit: see the way his feet are crossed? Jesse almost always does this when sitting up. So cute!

The Preschool Subway

Now that Lucas has gotten most of his friends hooked on trains, he's moved on to evangelizing his preschool class!

His teachers had noted that there were one or two kids besides Lucas who loved trains. There's one particular boy who goes on subway joy-rides in the same way that we do with Lucas. So... out came the books about trains, songs about trains, and now... a cardboard train and station!

Here's Lucas turning on the lights:

All of the boys and girls participated in painting the large cardboard box. The teachers arrived early and stayed late a few times to cut out holes for and reinforce the windows, to purchase extra parts, and to attach press-on lights for the front. They posted pictures downloaded from the internet around the room for inspiration, and the class decided together on drawing a yellow "R" (the other day it was a blue "E").

To ride the subway, each child needs to buy a (carnival-style) ticket at the station:

The large paper to the left posts the rules of the subway:
1) Stay in your seat.
2) Wait behind the yellow line. [See it, below?]
3)You need to buy a ticket to ride the train.

Figuring out on the map where the subway is taking him...

'Stand clear of the closing doors, please!'

Caught

I walked into the living room one morning and found this little booger going to town on Lucas's bowl of cereal and soymilk. I think Papi had left it on the table in front of the t.v. for Lucas to work on while playing but Jesse got to it first. What I loved is how Jesse just kept enjoying and stuffing his face even after I saw him. There was absolutely no sense of being caught doing something off-limits. (I guess it didn't help that I was laughing with him.) Yes, Jesse!

Mua-haha-haha-haha!

How Did I Miss This One?!

Somehow I had overlooked before this fun photo of Lucas and the girls getting dumped on!